Fun Green Crafts for Kids

Reused picture frames can serve as their own artistic medium.

Green crafts show kids creative methods for reusing common household items. and with reused materials, crafting projects remain budget-friendly. Encourage kids to collect scraps from other projects and store them in a craft box for future use. Even items such as old clothing, food packaging and discarded office supplies can provide the basis for crafts. Add green items such as nontoxic paints, dyes and glues to your craft box to complete projects.

Mosaic Picture Frame

1

Paint an old picture frame with nontoxic acrylic paint and a paintbrush. Let the frame dry completely before continuing.

2

Cut apart old CDs into small rectangular pieces using scissors. Be sure to wear safety glasses when completing this step. If you have young kids, you may want to complete this step for them.

3

Glue the CD pieces to the old picture frame using a hot glue gun. Try to cover the entire frame with pieces of the CDs; you may need to cut customized pieces to fit odd-shaped areas. If your children are too young to handle a glue gun, have them choose where the pieces go while you attach them.

4

Add additional decorations such as scrap ribbon, sequins and buttons to the covered frame. To add some color, paint certain pieces of the CD mosaic with a nontoxic acrylic paint thinned with a little water.

Denim Pillow

1

Cut a leg off of a discarded pair of jeans with a pair of sharp scissors. Remove any hem at the bottom of the leg. Cut the remaining denim from the discarded jeans into 1-inch-by-4-inch scraps.

2

Trim the leg to create the desired length of the pillow. Try to isolate an area on the leg that is in good condition and has two parallel seams.

3

Turn the leg inside out and stitch across one end using a sewing machine or needle and thread.

4

Stuff the pillow with the denim scraps. Sew the other end of the pillow together using a needle and thread with a thimble to prevent pinpricks.

5

Add scraps of ribbon, fabric, buttons and other items to decorate the denim pillow. Kids can also apply nontoxic fabric paint after all of the other decorations have been applied.

Things You Will Need

Acrylic paint

Paintbrush

Picture frame

Discarded CDs

Scissors

Safety glasses

Hot glue

Hot glue gun

Ribbon

Sequins

Buttons

Jeans

Sewing machine

Needle and thread

Thimble

Fabric

Fabric paint

Tip

Use a low-temperature hot glue gun to reduce the chance of burning little fingers.

Tailor each craft to your child's age and ability. Your child may need help completing some steps of these projects.

Old CDs have other crafting uses as well. They can be turned into coasters and wall decorations, and a mosaic project can work for many items, like flower pots or other containers.

Warning

Supervise your child carefully when using the sewing machine. Although new sewing machines often have safety features to avoid accidents, teach proper hand placement while using the machine to avoid injury.

About the Author

Amy A. Whittle is a freelance writer who specializes in home improvement, green living and pet care issues. Her work has been published by Woman's Day.com, the Huffington Post and other online and print publications.